Life's Lessons
by Katrina5
Summary: She has learned much more than he will ever realize. Rin Jaken friendship


Title: Life's Lessons  
Pairing or Character: Rin (+ Jaken & Ah Un)  
Rating: K  
Genre: General/Humor  
Spoiler Warnings: As long as you know all the characters above, you're good to go, ;)  
Author's Note: I hope you enjoy this. I really don't write these characters all too often.

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The flower was perfect. The tiny petals were at the peak of their beauty, soft and supple and full of life. A tiny hand wound around the stem, mindful of the delicate state of the plant. With a quick tug, the flower was released from the ground and held gently in her hands. A bright smile shone on Rin's face as she held the perfect flower, cautiously sniffing the sweet fragrance.

For as long as she could remember, the beautiful plants had fascinated her to no end. She could sit and stare at them for hours without realizing just how much time had passed. It was such a simple act, but it never failed to make her happy. Wanting to share that happiness with her companions, she always tried to pick the prettiest of the buds that grew within the various areas they traveled across.

As the months had passed, she had learned about all sorts of flowers that grew in the area. Jaken had grudgingly taught her the names of some of the more common ones while carefully instructing her about which plants to avoid unless she wanted to end up sick. He took special care to point out the flowers that had nearly killed him the last time she had surprised him with a wreath upon waking from a nap. She still could not believe that something so gorgeous could be so deadly.

Glancing over her shoulder, she giggled as she watched Jaken sleeping against one of the many trees in the area. It was far from an unusual sight, but it never failed to bring out her mischievous side. She was always tempted to tease him by placing another wreath of flowers around his neck while he slept just to see the reaction it would bring. He was gruff and impatient with her most times but she knew deep down he cared for her. If he didn't care, he would have let her wander off long ago.

In the distance, Ah-Un bellowed and she smiled, running towards the two-headed youkai. He may not be able to talk with her, but he was always willing to listen to whatever she had to share. Upon reaching his side, Rin hugged the twin heads and settled herself on the ground before the giant beast. Holding out the flower, she watched as first one head delicately sniffed the blossom while the other joined in a few moments later. Laughter escaped as a loud sneeze echoed across the meadow, startling Jaken from his sleep. He grabbed his staff, swinging it in wild arcs over his head.

"Rin! Rin! Where are you, you foolish child?" The staff ceased its movements as he spotted her. A look of relief flashed across his face before being replaced with is usual grim scowl. With a huff, Jaken approached and smacked his staff against the ground. "What trouble have you gotten yourself into now?"

"I haven't even left the clearing yet, Jaken-sama." With a smile, she presented him with her flower, sitting up to rest on her knees and bowing low to the ground. Returning to her previous position, she offered Jaken another smile. "I promised Sesshoumaru-sama that I would behave today!"

Jaken grabbed the flower, muttering about girlish nonsense and Rin giggled when she realized he wasn't aware of just what he held in his hand. An insect buzzed around the bud, but Jaken was too distracted as he lectured her on the merits of silence.

"Jaken-sama.." Rin tried valiantly to capture his attention and warn him against swinging his fist around. Her eyes followed the path of the small insect, making her wince as Jaken's hand unintentionally swatted it away.

He ignored her, interrupting her instead. "Not now, Rin! This is important."

"But Jaken-sama! There's…" Her words trailed off as she watched the insect sting the hand that held the flower. Here eyes widened as everything seemed to happen at once.

With a yelp, Jaken tossed the flower to the ground and dropped his staff. Rin could only try to hide her smile as she watched him nurse his injured hand. She had tried to tell him after all. It wasn't her fault that he had ignored her attempts to warn him of the dangers of waving his hands around.

Lifting herself up from the ground, Rin took Jaken's hand in hers and carefully looked at the injury. There was a slight swelling, but nothing seemed very serious. Reaching into the small pocket within her clothes she pulled out some herbs Jaken had taught her about and wrapped them neatly against his hand with a strip of cloth from the hem of her outfit.

"There. All better now!" Ignoring the surprised look on Jaken's face, she returned to telling Ah-Un about her adventures while the toad youkai wandered back to his spot mumbling about 'listening' and 'paying attention for once.' Hiding a smile behind her hand, Rin began to share the story of finding the perfect flower.


End file.
